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£2,000 sublet demand to frail pensioner needing care from freeholder Silhill Investments Limited (plus £375 to Pennycuik Collins)

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Pennycuik Collins says there are parking issues at St John’s Close, which may be exacerbated by subletting … and somehow this is ameliorated by paying their client £2,000 for subletting consent

A frail pensioner who needs to pay for care has been hit with a demand for £2,000 to rent out her flat from freeholder Silhill Investments Limited.

The demand has been issued to the family of Joan Nelson, of St John’s Close, Solihull, by Pennycuick Collins, which also wants £375 for “handling the negotiation and preparing any necessary documentation”.

According to correspondence from the firm in October, this “negotiation” appeared to involve a telephone conversation with Mrs Nelson’s daughter, followed by a “one-off fee for the landlord’s consent is £2,000”.

Pennycuik Collins block management team, Tweeting at the ARMA conference in October, where Communities Secretary Sajid Javid optimistically described the trade body’s members as “good guys” in the sector
The £2,375 subletting bill has been referred to Duncan Jones MP

The family of Joan Nelson contacted local Conservative MP Marcus Jones, who referred the matter to LKP.

Mrs Nelson owns a modest leasehold maisonette, where – not unusually – muddled wording appears to allow subletting on payment of a guinea (£1.05), but later has the clause:

“Not to use and occupy the demised premises for any purpose other than that of a private residence for the sole occupation of the Lessee and his family.”

To vary this part of the lease Silhill Investments Limited wants its £2,000.

Silhill appears to be a small portfolio of a Hampshire professional family, and its directors are given as:

Maria Felicitas Evans
Dr Michael Roland Witold Evans
Izabella Katya Charlotte Szudy Osgood
Margarita Eliza Jadwiga Osgood

Peter Dening, of Pennycuik Collins, issued a statement to LKP saying:

“[The clause] clearly prohibits the sub-letting of the flat and the amount requested in the sum of £2,000.00 represents a premium for relaxation of this clause.
“With regard to our own fees, in the sum of £375.00, this is our professional fee, being the cost to our client, of handling the negotiation and preparing any necessary documentation.

“The background to this matter is that St John’s Close is a development of maisonettes, all subject to leases, but with no overall management control in place.

“There are parking difficulties at the development, which it is believed are exacerbated by the sub-letting of units and also complaints from residents over the standards of maintenance.

“It is believed that relaxation of this clause to allow subletting would add to these problems and the initial inclination was to deny the request.

“However, as you know there are special circumstances in this case which you have already outlined and so the decision was taken to allow relaxation of the occupation clause subject to payment of a premium and the costs incurred.”

Communities Secretary Sajid Javid addressed leasehold property management at the ARMA conference in October:

Sajid Javid has thought about leasehold property management and does not like what he sees …

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  1. Paddy

    As a non legal mind, just pondering how the contradiction in the lease fell in favour of a two grand fee rather than the guinea clause? Which party to a contract gets to decide between such significant contradictions?

    I recall an ARMA agent ordering a leaseholder neighbour to repair rotting windows or face action for breach of the lease obligation to keep the demise in good repair, and then proposing pursuing breach action anyway because the worried leaseholder acted on the written warning and replaced the windows without seeking prior written consent. Landlord demurred on the agent’s proposal.

    The catch 22 of leasehold?

  2. Michael Epstein

    Interesting one ! I presume the cost of a lease variance could be challenged in the tribunal.
    However, what catches my attention is to how just one flat can have the lease varied?
    Surely any variance in one property must have a material effect on other properties?
    Without going through the correct procedures the lease can’t be varied?
    That rather suggests that the one guinea fee (plus expenses) applies in this case.

  3. ollie

    Some past advice from Lease :

    https://www.lease-advice.org/article/your-rights-when-subletting/

    The cost of negotiation is priced at £375 but the £2ooo cost of giving consent is OTT.

    The UTT ( Upper Tier Tribunal ) had determined around 2012 for a few cases , the fair charge for subletting consent to be £40.. The leaseholder should apply to the FTT ( First Tier Tribunal ) to reduce the charge from £2000, an extortionate fee to nearer £40.